difference isospeed control and control classic?
- Thread starter morten
- Start date
ChappyOnIce
New User
The specs show them as being of similar construction. One noticable difference is that the Classic is not pre-stretched from what I've heard and therefore they ask you to string it up tighter.
ChappyOnIce
New User
Just to follow up on this, I got this directly from Isospeed regarding the Professional:
The new version holds better tension. We added some (not many) multifilaments. This filaments are prestretched inside the string. Therefore the tension loss is minimized and you are able to decrease string tension in comparison to the classic version. So when you always strung by 28 kg then you can go down to 24 kg (new version).
So in fact the Classic version is a little bit more elastic and the new version provides longer constant playability.
The new version holds better tension. We added some (not many) multifilaments. This filaments are prestretched inside the string. Therefore the tension loss is minimized and you are able to decrease string tension in comparison to the classic version. So when you always strung by 28 kg then you can go down to 24 kg (new version).
So in fact the Classic version is a little bit more elastic and the new version provides longer constant playability.
ChappyOnIce
New User
The same tension as what? If you were using classic and stringing it higher than your standard reference tension, go back to your reference tension and string the new version about 10% lower (similar to a poly). That's the recommendation.
ChappyOnIce
New User
In the end, it's what you are comfortable with. Their point is that if you string at 44 with syn gut, it will settle to 40 after 24 hours without any play time at all. They have pre-stretched the new control so it will not drop that tension. So your syn gut ends up at 40 after a day of sitting around, but the new control will not. The old control was even more elastic than syn gut so it would drop/settle from 48 to 40 in your example in the same timeframe. If your not comfortable with the initial reference tension they recommend, improvise 
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.Assuming the relationship between the new IsoPro and old IsoPro is the same as between the new IsoControl and old IsoControl, the following would be true I believe:
-Both old and new come prestreched. the old came on a prestretched reel.
-Neither are to be prestretched before stringing
-The old was to be strung 10% higher than someones' normal tension. The string was to tension loss the 10% then stabilize
-The new is to be strung at 10% less than someones normal tension as you would a conventional poly
I have one of my bats strung w. my normal hybrid, but with the new IsoPro x's and will report on how that goes in a new thread
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-Both old and new come prestreched. the old came on a prestretched reel.
-Neither are to be prestretched before stringing
-The old was to be strung 10% higher than someones' normal tension. The string was to tension loss the 10% then stabilize
-The new is to be strung at 10% less than someones normal tension as you would a conventional poly
I have one of my bats strung w. my normal hybrid, but with the new IsoPro x's and will report on how that goes in a new thread
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ChappyOnIce
New User
I just strung up one of my frames with a full bed of the new IsoPro. Per the Isospeed rep's recommendation, I strung it at 54. I have a FXP Heat which recommends a mid-point of 57 and I usually string syn gut at 60 and poly at 54. I have to say, the string did not give much during tensioning at all...somewhat like a stiff poly. But when playing with it, it had very soft almost elastic playing qualities. I really like the string and agree (from my standpoint) that the 10% lower is applicable. I've also found the strings don't move much at all. It's a very playable string.
That said, I never played or strung the classic version so I don't have a basis of comparison for that. I have also never played with natural gut, but have heard that IsoPro is very similar. After hitting with it, I can say that it's what I imagine natural gut would be like
That said, I never played or strung the classic version so I don't have a basis of comparison for that. I have also never played with natural gut, but have heard that IsoPro is very similar. After hitting with it, I can say that it's what I imagine natural gut would be like
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I just strung up one of my frames with a full bed of the new IsoPro. Per the Isospeed rep's recommendation, I strung it at 54. I have a FXP Heat which recommends a mid-point of 57 and I usually string syn gut at 60 and poly at 54. I have to say, the string did not give much during tensioning at all...somewhat like a stiff poly. But when playing with it, it had very soft almost elastic playing qualities. I really like the string and agree (from my standpoint) that the 10% lower is applicable. I've also found the strings don't move much at all. It's a very playable string.
That said, I never played or strung the classic version so I don't have a basis of comparison for that. I have also never played with natural gut, but have heard that IsoPro is very similar. After hitting with it, I can say that it's what I imagine natural gut would be like
between the two of us we should be able to nail this. i got zero help from TW in asking them a couple of simple questions and they are the sole US Distributor for the stuff.
i've got lots of experiences w. gut and also w. the IsoPro classic. for now, i've got the new one strung up in the Mojo setup, but havent hit with it yet...i agree with your observations so far <save for the playability as I;ve not hit it yet>, and have tons of experiences w. gut and also been playing the isoPro classic in the mojo setup for some while...i'll start a thread after i've had a good hit w. the stuff, but it appears this new string got a bad rep unecessarily from the get go
ChappyOnIce
New User
Looking forward to seeing your thread and reading your comments. I sent an email directly to IsoSpeed and got a response from Austria (in multiple languages even) which I posted earlier in this thread, I didn't send out to TW.
ChappyOnIce
New User
Sure...I've tried a bunch of things in the past 4 months or so. Kirschbaum Touch Turbo, Pro Line II, and Competition (all 17g). I've also tried Gamma Syn Gut, TNT2 (18g), PSGM, X1 Biphase, and Gosen OG Micro. Is there one of those specifically that you would like me to compare it to?
ChappyOnIce
New User
Power
Competition is lowest powered of the strings between the 3. You can take a pretty good whack at the ball and still hold it down. I found that for my game, Competition was too low powered and with less feel at net. My serve seemed to suffer a bit as well. Good string for a big hitter though, I do hit fairly hard, but not enough for this string to be effective.
X1 was a string that I really wanted to like. It feels cool and I had the red color which looked pretty sweet. In the end though, it just felt dead to me. I never adjusted to the sting and couldn't read the power level at all. It seems fairly close with the new IsoPro in terms of power, but I didn't get the consistency.
IsoPro is a farily powerful string. It's close to PSGM in that regard. It just pockets the ball very well which allows me to have slightly better control and feel.
Greatest to least: IsoPro>X1>Competition
Control
Competition is a pretty solid control string. Most folks would agree that polys in general make a solid choice for players looking for maximum control and Competition is no exception. The sacrifice in most cases is usually power.
X1 as mentioned above was all over the board with me. Just when I hit a few good shots and thought I was getting a feel for the string, I would get what seemed an inconsistent response. I'm guessing I have not increased my tension as much as I should have. I have heard only great things about this string in general so it surprised me.
Control is not IsoPro's best attribute, but it has a very consistent response so it was easy for me to "dial in" and adjust. Deep ball pocketing, similar to what gut must play like (I've never played with gut). It wasn't as elastic as X1 on the stringer and I think that helped with the response consistency.
Competition>IsoPro>X1
Spin
Of the 3 strings, Competition was able to impart the most spin as you might expect. You have to take a more aggressive cut at the ball and the way a string moves on the poly bed (rebound effect of the string returning to it's position) gave Competition an advantage here. IsoPro does not do a bad job imparting spin though. I find that shots like a slice backhand actually benefit from the playability of the IsoPro strings and have a nicer spin effect. With X1 my woes continued. I just could not dial in topspin shots, but spin serves did well.
Competition>IsoPro>X1
Sting movement
Competition moves the least, again a common desireable property of a poly. I was pleasantly surprised by IsoPro though. They did not move nearly as much as I thought they would - much less than syn guts or other multi's that I've tried. For the first couple hours they didn't really move at all. I've also noticed that they don't appear to notch like syn guts and multi's can. IsoPro is very much a unique string in construction and it shows. X1 moved quite a bit, though I personally don't mind that much because straightening my strings allows me to focus between points.
Most movement to least movement:
X1>IsoPro>Competition
Comfort
This is a "no-brainer" for me. IsoPro is hands-down the most comfortable string among the three. I probably would have felt better with X1 had I not been trying so hard to generate spin and overcoming the dead feeling I got. Competition is somewhat soft for a poly, but still much more harsh on the arm than the others.
Most comfortable to least comfortable:
IsoPro>X1>Competition
Durability
I can't comment much on this because I'm not a string breaker. I tend to cut strings out long before I'd ever break them. From a tension holding standpoint, IsoPro seems to be holding up well. I have 2 frames strung with them and after the first 5-6 hours of hitting on each, they are holding up well. The X1 seems to offer much less in this area. I think that Competition is very durable, but may not maintain playability which is typical of polys.
You didn't ask for feel/playability, but I really like IsoPro in that area. The pocketing effect when hitting the ball gives me confidence. It's a very personal thing and everyone has different definitions of feel, but I really like IsoPro.
Overall, I've been very pleasantly surprised by IsoPro. I would recommend stringing at the lower part of the range for your frame, that is where it really shines. I don't have any affiliation with Isospeed, but after trying so many strings over the last 5 months, I was begining to think that I would just have to settle for something and get used to it.
You may also want to check out the online playtest at:
http://www.racquetsportsindustry.com/articles/2007/06/isospeed_professional_17.html
Hope this helps.
